St. Camillus Center for Spiritual Care

St. Camillus Center for Spiritual Care Accompanying People with Hope + Acompañando a Personas con Esperanza We are here to be present to patients and supportive of family and staff.

A Ministry of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles
Serving LAC+USC Medical Center · Keck Hospital of USC · USC Norris Hospital

We are Catholic chaplains of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. We try to live out our Mission Statement in light of the Gospel. We work in collaboration with the other chaplains of the Interfaith Chaplaincy Center. We pray for your healing and we hope we can be part of your jour

ney of faith. Our chapel and office are in the midst of this wonderful health care complex dedicated to the ill and often forgotten person, "the least of our brothers and sisters."

Address

1911 Zonal Avenue
Los Angeles, CA
90033

Telephone

+13232254461

Website

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Our Story

St. Camillus Center for Spiritual Care (SC) provides 24-hour ministry to the Los Angeles County+USC Medical Center, USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center & Hospital, and Keck Medical Center of USC. Father Chris Ponnet has been its Pastor and Chaplain since 1994. He became Director of Spiritual Care at LAC+USC in 2012, overseeing a staff of 14 chaplains and 30 community clergy who serve 46,800 patients per year (900/week).

“I’ve been inspired by the writings of Saint Camillus de Lellis, that says we should care for the ‘sick-poor’. This theology demands that we accompany the sick and change the social injustices of marginalized people,” explains Fr. Chris Ponnet.

These corporal works of mercy began in 1855, upon the request of Los Angeles’ civic leaders, which spurred the arrival of The Daughters of Charity. Since then, the Catholic Archdiocese of LA has continued to provide a religious presence to Los Angeles County Hospital, more commonly referred to as LA’s General Hospital. Almost 100 years later (1954), Saint Camillus was founded across the street as a Catholic parish of 300 families. In 1985, due to the hospital’s boundary expansion, and under the vision of pastor Fr. Don Kribs, Saint Camillus became the Saint Camillus Center for Pastoral Care— dedicated to Chaplaincy.

Today, the Saint Camillus Center for Spiritual Care hosts the SC Urban Interfaith Center, an interfaith professional chaplain formation program, which produces 15 board certified chaplains each year through Accredited Chaplain Pastoral Education, and has trained 271 students over a period of 21 years. SC is also home to several social justice ministries: Catholic HIV/AIDS Ministry, Pax Christi Southern California, Angel Interfaith Network, Catholics Against the Death Penalty, and Catholic Ministry with Gay and Le***an Persons.